


A Truly 'Howling' Commando

by FloofyFoxPaw



Series: The Saga of Mallow [1]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Canon Compliant, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Humor, Light Angst, Original Character(s), Original Female Character(s) - Freeform, POV Original Female Character, Possibly Cringey Writing, Wolf-Dog Main Character, short-ish
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-21
Updated: 2021-02-21
Packaged: 2021-03-19 00:55:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 10
Words: 21,059
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29618127
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FloofyFoxPaw/pseuds/FloofyFoxPaw
Summary: In the wake of the possible purge of fanfiction off Wattpad, I've decided to move all of my posted drafts here so I won't lose them completely should they be deemed as needing deletion. I doubt it, but just to be safe.If you decide to read this, please note that I wrote this almost three years ago so the writing is... okay-ish. My descriptive work stands up (sort-of), but the character 'thoughts' and execution are, in my personal opinion, sub-par. Though that could be me looking back at my middle school writing and cringing from my more practiced place now. Just warning you right off the bat X3~~~~~~~~~~In the year 1938 on the 24th of July, a puppy is born. The only survivor of a litter of four, with strange colorings and features. Refusing to lay down and submit, she will fight for anybody or anything that deserves it. Her life is filled with friendship and loss, love and hate, and twists and turns she would never expect.
Series: The Saga of Mallow [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2176131





	1. Nightmares

The wind blew harshly through the frigid air on the open mountain. The expanse of rock and snow seldom dotted with patches of trees seeming to be devoid of life.

The howling of the wind was interrupted with my delicate pawsteps crunching through the snow. A single dark shape fighting through the deep snow on short legs, my throat just barely appearing above the ocean of white. Clouds billowed around my blunt muzzle as every breath seared my lungs. I flattened down my tiny ears as best I could as my short tail encircled around my hind legs, attempting to keep them warm. Snow landed on my pelt, creating white specks in the dark fur. My delicate and fuzzy pelt did a poor job of hindering the cold as it sliced straight through, seeming to bite into my bones with its unrelenting fangs.

I stopped on the exposed rock face that dropped abruptly in a sheer cliff, going down, down, down, beyond where my vision would allow. The cold white flecks stung my eyes and caught on my whiskers. I lowered my muzzle to the ground and licked at the cold powder, confusion filling my gaze as the substance shifted to water in my mouth. _'What is this stuff? It's water... but not at the same time...'_

Raising my head from the ground, my gray-blue eyes trailed over the white and black expanse. _'Where..? Where am I?'_

A loud mechanical roaring intruded my thoughts as a blaring horn assaulted my ears. Imperceptible voices and gunshots accompanied an odd energy-like sound that usually transpired after a shout. I saw a large metal plate fly past as an explosion sounded. I heard a cry, filled with terror as it quickly became fainter and fainter, as though swept off the edge by the wind. The blizzard and wind kicked up, cloaking everything in a dense blanket of white as it tugged relentlessly at my fur. Another voice hit my ears, filled with anguish and pain before everything went black.


	2. Heart of a Fighter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Possible reader-annoyance for my choice of dog-breed being not really their personality, but it's just this one moment so don't think it'll happen all the time. Enjoy!

——6:00 am——  
——30th of November, 1938——

I jolted awake in the kennel, the glacial dream still clinging to my mind like cobwebs. Shaking my head to clear it, I stood up and stretched my shortish limbs and opened my jaws in a yawn. A door opened in another room and footsteps indicated the arrival of an employee. He passed from animal to animal, filling bowls with food and water and checking on them.

When he reached mine, I simply observed in silence as he filled up my bowls and walked off again to finish up. Before long, he left the room again.

I sighed and glanced around the room containing my cage that had been 'home' for my entire life. There was another room that other dogs were kept in, sort of an open play area for the ones on display for the public -whether that be because they were the best or simply wanted to be gotten rid of was unknown. I had only been there once, but that was because my lock was broken and I escaped... Spotting a calender I saw the word 'November' and '1938' across the top. _'I was born in July right..? That makes me... four months old..? Sounds right.'_

The other dogs began to bark at one another. I ignored them and sank into my bed again. My limbs still felt frozen and stiff, as though I had truly been struggling through the snow on that mountain...

My thoughts were disrupted by the squeals of children in the main room, followed by hurried footsteps heading towards the door. One of the office staff came in, and in tow were two children, and a man and woman. The children were noisy and rushed around awkwardly. I flattened my ears as best I could to deaden the noise, but one of the adults —the woman— came over to me. The overpowering scent of perfume wafted over from her as I studied her face with my blue eyes before she called her children over. My dark, molted fur made me almost invisible in the shaded cage, save for the light sandy patches on my legs, chest, and eyes, and white stripe that went down my forehead and painted my muzzle. I had dark grayish—navy blue eyes that were both light and sharp at the same time.

"What about this one?" The woman remarked to —what I assume to be— her family. The employee came over and inquired if the family wanted me to be taken out so they could meet me. The children were already attempting to reach me through the bars so of course, the adults agreed. _'Oh great... grabby kids. I can't wait to have my ears pulled on...'_

The children were shooed back as the employee opened my cage and picked me up. I struggled in their grasp, striving to get my paws back on the ground. He handed me to the other man before I was passed to the woman. She began to stroke my head gently, but I began to sneeze due to the overwhelming scent of lavender perfume.

She laughed a little before depositing me on the ground. _'Oh thank god, back on solid ground.'_

My relief was short-lived as the children instantly began to poke and prod at me. I tried to move away but they continued to attempt —emphasis on 'attempt'— to pet me. Luckily the employee picked me up and placed me back into my cage, safe from the hands of the children.

"I think we'll take her." The couple agreed and the employee left the room to go and finalize the adoption.

I sank against the wall, my paws tucked beneath me and my eyes closed as I waited. _'At least I'm getting out of here, could be worse...'_

I was taken out again and a rosy collar was attached to my neck, just tight enough to be very irritating. I scratched at it with my hind paw as the employee spoke to the family.

"I have to warn you, she's very headstrong, stubborn, and protective. Keep a close eye on her alright?"

I gave a light huff and stopped working to get the collar off. _'That's true... But also a drastic understatement.'_

The man picked me up awkwardly due to my size and began to walk out of the room, his family trailing behind.

"What should we name her?" The woman piped up the question after we were out of the building. The cooling air ruffled my fur as my nightmare from earlier entered my brain again. I look off lost in thought again...

"Lucy!!!" The children both called out the same name at the top of their lungs, shocking me out if my thoughts. _'Oww...'_ I pawed at my ears as they rung slightly.

The adults chuckled for a bit before agreeing, "Alright, Lucy it is.".

——Time skip: A couple of hours later——  
——Time: 1:00pm——

We all arrived at a park in the city, Brooklyn I think it was? One of the children unhooked my leash from the collar before joining the family on a blanket for a picnic.

I pad away to a tree nearby and settled myself pleasantly in the grass. Overall it was cool, but the breeze held a sharpness that signaled incoming snowfall. The trees were starting to lose their last leaves that had at one point been colored gorgeously with shades of orange, gold, and little bits of red. A couple of leaves would occasionally blow by, completing the peaceful picture.

I was taken out of my thoughts by a small, white Pitt bull puppy with gentle brown eyes shyly padding over. I looked over and tilted my head a little as they peacefully wagged their tail, before lowering their front in a play bow with their tongue lolling out cheerfully. I got up and jumped at them, growling playfully as I gently took their paw between my teeth. We began to wrestle about, both letting out little yips occasionally and playfully growling. I learned his name was Flurry, which made sense with the white pelt, and well he was a he. At one point, Flurry dashed a little ways away before looking back. _'What are you up to...'_

I took a step towards him and they bounced backward. _'Ohhh I get it, tag it is!'_ I bolted towards him and Flurry took off in a blur of white, with me right behind them. We ran about the park before he started to go around a small group of people. _'Oh no you don't...'_ I ran straight through the group, dodging around people's legs and items to catch up.

When I came out, I found Flurry alright... in front of a very angry golden retriever.

I saw Flurry backing up slowly, as his tail went down between his legs. I trot forwards and pushed up beside Flurry as I stared down the bigger adult dog. I growled with my tail stiffly out behind me, ears flat against my head. I didn't look or sound very intimidating, but I was not going to back down. Like I said, stubborn was an understatement to my temperament.

The dog barked twice to try and scare me off, but I responded with a bark of my own. My lips twitched once before my eyes flicked towards Flurry as I growled out a warning.

I heard his pawsteps slowly begin to stiffly back up in fear, but he didn't run away.

The dog lunged forward and picked me up by my scruff, shaking me around a bit. My back paws just barely lifted off the ground, but they usually found their way back down due to my weight of 60lbs and height of 1'10". A rasping noise came from my throat as I tried to snarl. I twisted my head around as best I could, enabling my teeth to dig into the side of the dog's muzzle by the cheek. My jaw muscles weren't fully developed yet, but my teeth were sharp enough to puncture the skin. It was excruciatingly painful, and ultimately enough for him to drop me on the ground.

I could feel the punctures in my shoulders and scruff begin to sting. I laid on the ground for a moment dazed, my heartbeat in my ears. Flurry ran over, gently nosing my face. _'Come on, get up. Get up!'_

I pulled my paws underneath me and struggled up, failing twice as my paws slipped out from under me on the damp grass. I lifted my head as the wounds on my shoulders and neck began to bleed. I growled again, a bit weaker but still ever-present.

This time, the attack came more severely than before. The now enraged dog bit down a few times, digging their teeth into my flank and neck until I was slumped on the ground. The deep and fresh wounds on my sides slowly stained the grass as I laid there. Rendered unable to move due to the stinging pain in my muscles and back, and throbbing as my heartbeat pounded in my ears.

_'Oww...'_

I laid there for a while longer. By now everybody in the park knew about what was happening. Blood seeped through my fur onto the grass, slowly creating a puddle as the grass stems were slicked with the thick crimson liquid. My breaths slowed as I fought to stay awake. My eyes became a little glassy and my vision blurred a bit. Sounds seemed quieter and further away. I just barely registered Flurry barking while struggling to get to me.

_'I need to get up...'_

_'I have to get up...'_

_'Come on.'_

_'Get up.'_

_'Get up!'_

I began to stir, the pain of moving almost too much to bear. My paws slid out from under me more times than I could count. Blood began to trickle from my nose as Flurry somehow got to me. He put his head below mine and helped me up onto my feet. I swayed a little bit but stayed on my paws. "Thank you..." I whimpered out through the stinging pain.

Somebody picked me off the ground, and this time I went completely limp. I wasn't going to struggle, that would be a very bad, almost lethal idea. Whoever it was brought me to a car and drove off with me in their lap, their pants becoming stained with deep crimson. My vision blurred one last time before my eyes closed, and I fell into unconsciousness.

Little did I know, the whole scene was watched by two men who would end up changing my life in the future.


	3. Puppyhood Didn't Last Very Long

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was in a major 'White Fang' mood when I wrote this so excuse the blatant near-copying if you've read it too XD

——Time: 11:30pm——  
——30th of November, 1938——

Pain. Dull and throbbing all over my body. That was the first thing I felt.

I opened my eyes only to instantly squeeze them shut again. I shook my head a bit, only to be overcome with extreme nausea. _'Ohh... That was a bad idea...'_

I opened my eyes again, slowly this time. Allowing my eyes to adjust to the light before opening them further. I could smell chemicals and cleaning products, as well as rubber and other animals. _'I'm in a cage again... wonderful...'_ It was barren and silver looking, with square bars creating a door. I looked down at the blanket around my feet before looking back up.

Images flashed in front of my eyes as I shut them again. Being carried into a building. I was set on a table and injected with something. I felt tired and became unable to move before falling asleep. I woke up again, feeling a little better before falling asleep again.

Feeling something tightly squeezing my chest and sides, I looked down. White bandages were securely wrapped around my entire torso up to my neck at the base of my jaw. Something else caught my attention and I sighed with relief. _'The collar's gone. Oh yay! That thing felt like it was going to suffocate me.'_

I noticed a tube leading from a bag outside the cage into my foreleg. Not knowing why it was there, I decided to leave it alone. _'Who knows what it's doing for me...'_

A wave of exhaustion came over me as I settled back into the blanket. I struggled to get comfortable before settling on my stomach, my forepaws stretched out in front of me. Resting my head on my paws, I drifted off into sleep.

——Timeskip: 8:00am——  
——1st of December, 1938——

The opening of a door woke me from a dreamless sleep. I yawned before attempting to stretch my stiff limbs, wincing as my wounds began to hurt again.

A woman in a white uniform came over with a clipboard and began to look me over. She nodded and wrote a few things down before setting the board aside. Opening the cage, she took the tube out of my foreleg. As she began to put things away, another person walked in. A man this time. "How's she doing?"

_'Well, I ain't dead yet, so fine...'_

"She's doing well, plenty hydrated so I took out the IV. She looks strong enough to be sent back, but I haven't checked her wounds yet."

 _'Back? Wait... back where?!'_ My eyes widened and my ears perked up, the flops on them bouncing slightly with the movement.

"Alright," the man responded to the nurse with a nod, "I'll check her wounds, you contact the shelter and update them about her condition."

 _'The shelter..? Oh no...'_ My face fell and my head and tail drooped. _'I'm being sent back to where I came from... So much for finally having a family...'_

The woman left the room with a nod. I looked off blankly as the man gently began to unwrap my bandages and check my wounds. He got fresh ones and rewrapped my torso and neck. "You'll be fine. Those will heal up in a couple of days. You're lucky." His voice was reassuring, but it didn't help at all...

 _"I don't feel so lucky..."_ I whined out an answer as he pats my head gently.

"Nurse!" He called out and the woman returned, peeking her head into the room. "She's good to go. Tell them she can be transported to the shelter again."

"Alright" She nodded before gently picking me up -with quite a bit of effort- cradling me in her arms. We went down the hall and outside before she put me in the passenger seat of a car. Closing the door, she began to speak to another man outside. I put my head on the seat and sighed in defeat. _'I wonder if there us anyone new at the shelter? Hopefully not, but at the same time a new face would be welcome.'_

The man got in the car and we drove off. Lifting my head, I stared out the window. Collecting my thoughts and watching the world go by.

——Time skip 9:00am——

After an hour, we reached the shelter. My home once again... I scoffed _'This isn't home... It's a prison for those not fortunate enough to have a place to call home.'_ The man picked me up awkwardly and we head inside. I expected to be put back in the kennel, and lo and behold there it was. He placed me in the cage before closing it and walking out again.

I laid down on my bed with a sigh as my ears drooped down. _'Back here again... Its only been a day for derp's sake!'_

Footsteps sounded in the front room and I lifted my head again, ears perked. The pattern in the steps was... odd. It was a man, and he walked with confidence and authority. But it was clear those were not conscious behaviors. Ones that had been ingrained into him over time.

Muffled voices sounded and the door opened, revealing a familiar employee and the new man. He looked to be in or near his 20s, about 6' tall. Soft brown hair was just barely visible below an olive-colored cap he wore, matching the rest of the uniform. He looked directly at me with soft and friendly blue eyes that looked like pools of water; calming and kind.

I looked right back at him, the ocean blue of his eyes meeting the darkish gray-blue in mine. He broke eye contact and looked at the employee. "How is she?" He sounded curious and slightly worried, but his voice was warm and comforting.

"She'll be fine. We can take the bandages off in two days, but other than that she's perfectly fine."

I let out a huff and rolled my eyes. _'I don't think 'fine' is a good word for how I feel. I think frustrated and upset are much more fitting words.'_

The man heard my huff and a small smile appeared on his face. He looked back at the employee and tipped his cap in farewell. "Thank you for letting me see her, she's a tough cookie that's for sure."

The employee nodded his head and gave a small wave "Goodbye Sergeant. Have a nice day"

 _'Sergeant?'_ my ears shot up on my head, _'So he's a soldier... he didn't look like what I thought your typical soldier would. His eyes were too kind... oh well, maybe he's just friendly I don't know.'_ I shook my head slightly before allowing it to drop down again.

"Goodbye," He gave a last farewell before walking out of the room. I listened for his footsteps as they got further and further away, before disappearing entirely.

 _'Why would he want to see me? I've never seen him before... or have I..? I don't think so, but then again I'm too tired to think right now.'_ I gently shook my head before settling down in my bed. Images of the Sergeant with kind blue eyes filled my head as I drifted off to sleep.

——Time skip: 2 days later——  
——8:00am——  
——3rd of December, 1938——

I woke up again with a small flicker of excitement in my heart. Getting up, I stretched out my stiff limbs and opened my jaws in a yawn. Padding over to the bowls, I ate and drank my fill before sitting back down. _'Today the bandages come off. I can't wait, they're so uncomfortable to wear around all day. Plus I think I got a growth spurt, these are way too tight now...'_  
  


One of the only female employees walked into the room and opened up my cage. Picking me up in her arms and carrying me out of the room. She set me on a table and used a small pair of scissors to cut the bandages around my neck and torso. Once they were off, I looked at myself. My fur was flattened down, and a couple of scars were visible if you parted the fur a bit. I had a total of two scars on my sides and back, with one tiny one at the base of my neck where it met the shoulders.

The woman picked me up again with a grunt. I was around 2' tall now at the shoulder -apparently, I grew about 3-4" overnight. I was bigger than a german shepherd should be at 5 months old, but oh well.

Although, instead of bringing me back to my cage, she took me into the main area where dogs could walk around. She put me down and I looked around the room. A few of the dogs looked over at me but then went on their way again. It wasn't until now, amongst the other dogs, that I realized how different I looked upon closer inspection. My muzzle was longer and sharper, my ears were more rounded but still very pointy and tall, my legs were thinner and longer, and my fur and tail were longer and fluffier. At the moment all these details were slight, just on the edge of noticeable. You can bet some of the other 6-8-month-old pups noticed instantly.

One of the biggest walked over, a gray and cream-colored male with confidence radiating from him as his fur bristled and his legs went stiff. _'This ought to be interesting...'_

He began to growl at me and show his teeth in an attempt to scare me. He was older, at least by 2 months, but I was the same height. I began to growl right back, a soft yet warningly harsh noise rumbled straight from my throat. My ears flattened down against my head and my fur began to bristle.

_'Let's be smarter about this, I'm not exactly at full strength and I can't afford to be injured... As much as it pains me to do so, I need to walk away for now...'_

I continued to growl as I began to walk away, my legs stiff and one ear angled backward to listen for him moving. He snarled and jumped forward, biting down on my right hind-leg at the heel.

I whipped around and instincts took over as I slashed him with my fangs before jumping away snarling. A terrifying and harsh noise straight from my throat as the bridge of my nose wrinkled, and my lips were twitching. He fell back on his haunches in shock at the suddenness of the retaliation, his muzzle was ripped open along the side as blood dripped down his face from the ragged wound. The crimson drops hitting the floor as I walked away, not desiring to get in trouble my first day back at the shelter.

I found a quiet corner and sat down to think. The slash on my part had surprised me as well. I didn't know where that came from but had an awful feeling in the pit of my stomach.

I laid down and dozed off, my hind leg stinging a little bit from the bite.

That afternoon, I had that bad feeling again. One of the adult dogs came over to me. A black Doberman with golden brown markings around the face and belly. She was small -but still taller than I was- with bright brown eyes that seemed to sparkle. She sniffed at me as I stiffened a little, unsure of how to respond. I quickly relaxed as she lolled her tongue out of her mouth and lowered herself in a play bow, her tail wagging. I responded with a bow and we began to chase one another around the room.

We were interrupted from a wrestling match as I heard a growl again, the Doberman instantly looked worried and stood at her full height. I turned around and it was the same male from earlier. This time there were 4 others around him, each with their ears down and growling. I could smell the fear that emanated from them, I was a threat -and a terrifying one at that.

The Doberman began to walk away before speeding up to a trot. I didn't blame her, they weren't after her so leaving was the smart idea. I saw their legs tense up as they prepared to spring forward. _'Alright, chase it is.'_

They lunged forward and I turned and fled, my gait lengthening as I ran about the room. I outran them and was soon enough by myself again. Something was wrong... _'They gave up too easily... they wanted me to leave the Doberman alone...'_

Over the next two months, this continued. The main pup's name was Lip-Lip. He and the 'puppy pack' decided to torment me, not allowing me to play with the other dogs. My mind matured past puppyhood a lot faster than it should have. I became even more morose and solitary than I already was. My vocal cords grew harsh as I began to growl louder than any other dog, and my snarl was much more terrible than others'. A softer noise was rare as I grew harsher and harsher in temperament. No dog dared to approach me alone with a hint of stiffness in their legs or a twitch in their lips, lest they leave with a slashed side or muzzle.

I learned to fight quickly. I was scarred with the marks of Lip-Lip and the pack's teeth, but so were they. Each bite earned two times as many slashes on my part.

Although, one day somebody came back... somebody familiar. With kind eyes and a soft, warm voice...


	4. A True Friend

——10:00am——  
——5th of February, 1939——

I had the nightmare again... the same one from November on the snowy mountain. The first fear-filled scream seemed hauntingly familiar now, and the dream was vivid as ever. I had walked around a bit to clear my head before laying down again on the floor with a sigh.

The front door of the office opened and footsteps sounded as somebody walked in. My head rose up from its position on my forepaws. My ears perked up as I listened intently. _'Those footsteps...'_

I got up and began to walk around again. My stature had changed in the two months, being 2'9" tall now at nearly 8 months old. In comparison to the other dogs, my legs were longer and thinner, my ears sharp and tall even with the floppy ends, my muzzle was longer and sharper, my fur was longer and fluffier, and my tail became longer and bushier. My flank had a couple of visible scars, but most were hidden by my thick pelt. I had a scratch on my muzzle and my eyes were cold and dark as I watched everything. My muscles were stringy and had wiry strength rather than being knotted, and bulky. The only thing that looked a little funny was the fact both my ears were floppy at the top.

The footsteps stopped and I heard voices in the office. Most were shocked and hesitant but agreed nonetheless. The door opened revealing a woman, her face pale as fear radiated off her in waves. A man followed, wearing a brown uniform and cap with soft blue eyes that slowly scanned the room.

_'The Sergeant...'_

I watched from a hidden spot in the room. I had mastered hiding and observing without being observed. Although he quickly saw my dark gray-blue eyes staring at him from where he stood.

"Are you sure you want to do this? She isn't a puppy anymore..." The woman began, a fearful tone in her voice.

"I'll be alright." The Sergeant reassured the woman before walking into the room. She shut the door behind him and he was left there alone.

I moved silently, and quickly around him before crouching down to watch. I may remember him, but I had no intention of revealing myself yet.

He looked around before sitting down on the floor and turning to look directly at me. His blue eyes were soft and kind in comparison to my cold, dark orbs. _'Screw it.'_

I slowly walked out from my hiding spot, my bushy tail gently waving back and forth and my floppy ears bouncing slightly with every step. I stopped walking once I was about 15' away. My eyes softened a little as he gave a small smile in my direction.

My fur bristled slightly as a soft growl rose in my throat when he moved to scoot across the floor towards me. My eyes narrowed before I shifted my weight from one paw to the other.

"Hey."

His sudden speech surprised me and I growled at the same time. The growl died in my throat almost as fast as it had come. Though as he continued to talk to me, my growl came back. The union of his soft and kind words with the harshness of my growl sounded odd, but right at the same time.

He stopped talking and my growl faded until we were sitting in silence. _'I know his name now, it's Bucky. At least he HAS a name...'_ The staff had taken to calling me 'Ripper' since last month due to my fighting style and the wounds inflicted by my teeth. _'Can't say I like it as a name... but I don't have a choice in the matter now do I?'_

Bucky suddenly stood up and left the room. I sat down and stared at the door, a very confused expression on my face. The door opened again revealing Bucky once more, this time he held a huge bag in his hand. It looked to be about a pound as he set it on the floor before opening it.

The smell of meat wafted towards my sharp nose as my mouth began to water. _'Is that...'_ It had been forever since I ate any meat at all. I always had the dry, tasteless pellets that the shelter had.

Bucky took out a piece in his palm and offered it to me. I walked closer, bit by bit until I was within 5'. I sniffed at his hand, my eyes never leaving his before I took the meat in my jaws and swallowed it whole. He moved his hand and took out another piece before holding it out again. I took the meat again, and we continued this pattern until the bag was empty.

I sat down on my haunches as my dark blue eyes studied Bucky. Watching every movement he made, every tiny quirk and change in his posture or expression. _'Well... now what?'_

Bucky held out his hand again, this time with the palm downward and fingers curled in gently towards the palm. I moved my sharp muzzle towards him, sniffing his hand before pulling back again. I looked at Bucky with a confused expression before letting out a bark-like huff. _"Remind me what the point of that was again?"_

Bucky chuckled at my reaction before slowly reaching for my head with his hand. I fought to control my instinct to snap at his hand, the inner battle showing in my eyes as I leaned back my head. A low growl rumbled in my throat and he withdrew his hand. I looked apologetically at him and let out a small whine "Sorry..."

He simply smiled and we ended up sitting there for hours upon hours, him talking to me and I occasionally responding to him.

——6:30pm——

I began to yawn during one of the comfortable silences Bucky and I had fallen into. We had slowly worked up a trust with one another, but I still wasn't at petting yet. He noticed and let out a small laugh before getting up. He held out his hand and I sniffed it again.

"See ya tomorrow, alright?"

 _"Goodbye"_ I let out a growl, with a note of sadness in it, and a crooning that was just barely audible to Bucky's ear -but nobody else could hear it.

"Goodbye." He walked towards the door and left with a glance back at me before he disappeared behind the closed door.

I yawned again before standing and stretching my stiff limbs, aching from sitting one position for so long. _'Well that was nice... he was friendly towards me.'_

I pad off to a hidden corner of the room before settling down. Falling asleep quickly, and for once, deeply.

——9:45am——  
——6th of February, 1939——

I woke up to a familiar tempo of footsteps. _'Oh good, Bucky's back.'_ I couldn't stop the small wag that started moving my tail.

Getting up, I trotted into view of the door and stood there. The door opened and Bucky stepped out. He instantly saw me and walked over. His smile seemed to brighten after seeing my tail wagging softly. "Someone's happy to see me."

 _"Oh really? I wonder who it is."_ I let out a crooning-growl and rolled my eyes.

We continued our pattern of him talking and me responding sometimes. Although my responses were more common as time went on.

A couple of hours later, I heard pawsteps. One of the dogs in the pack came over. Beginning to wag her tail happily and loll her tongue out of her mouth. A soft growl came from my throat, although the notes and tone sounded harsh and laced with an unspoken warning.

Bucky looked at me and I'm willing to bet he saw the naked hatred and malice in my dark eyes. He looked back at the other dog with a confused expression.

She looked over at me and her tail instantly stopped wagging. I saw her shake her head in an attempt to hide her look for backup. I could smell the fear radiating off her in waves. My growl got louder _"Get out of here."_.

First mistake: coming alone.

She looked desperately at Bucky, pleading for help with her eyes. He looked between the two of us, seeming to connect the dots in his head. She let out a shrill whine and began to back up away from where I stood.

Second mistake: calling for help.

A small growl came from her throat while her fur slightly began to bristle. That was the final straw. Before anybody could register what was happening, I had leaped forward, ripping the flesh of her muzzle open with my teeth and leaped back again. A growl rose harshly in my throat as my ears flattened down, fur bristling, and legs stiff.

Final mistake: open hostility.

She stumbled back in shock, her muzzle ripped open. Ragged and bleeding, the crimson liquid dripping onto the floor. My lips lifted in a snarl and she fled with her tail between her legs.

My lips lowered and I looked back towards Bucky. He looked shocked at what had just happened. My head went down and I began to walk away.

"They don't like you... do they?"

I froze. I looked back towards Bucky and shook my head before a sarcastic expression made it onto my features and I growled out _"No! What gave it away?"_. As if on cue, a shout from the other side of the room boomed out.

"Ripper!"

I winced visibly at the name as Bucky looked at me with sympathy. "Ripper..? That's what they call you?"

I gave a small whine before looking at the very interesting floor. A sudden movement caused me to lift my head. Bucky had moved closer and was extending his hand again, palm down and fingers softly extended.

He slowly moved his hand closer and closer to my head as an involuntary growl rumbled softly in my throat. I watched his hand carefully as it descended towards the top of my head. The growl stayed, but I made no move to snap at his hand. Then something odd happened... he left his hand in front of my forehead. At the right height for me to be able to willingly move my head into his hand.

And I did just that. My head leaned forward and my eyes closed as I put it in his hand. He responded instantly and began to gently rub the top of my head. The growl gained the crooning note, just barely audible, but it was there.

Bucky removed his hand and got up. "I'll be right back." He gave a smile before leaving the room through the door to the office.

I sat down and heard muffled and shocked voices in the lobby. They quieted down a while, then rose up again with footsteps heading into the room.

Bucky came back in the room with a leather band in his hand. He knelt in front of me, seeming to study me. He held up the band and took a white rectangle out of it. I looked at him confused as I whined, _"What are you doing?"._

"How about Mallow? For your name."

I looked at him, a thoughtful expression on my face. _'Mallow... I like it!'_ My tongue lolled out of my mouth in a toothy grin and my tail wagged slightly, signaling my happiness.

Bucky wrote something on the rectangle and put it back into a plastic sleeve in the band. He gently began to loop the oversized band around my neck before fastening a buckle. It laid right at the base of my throat, the back resting where my shoulders met my neck. The collar wasn't too tight, it was comfortably loose, but it was still tight enough not to move around that much.

My thick fur almost obscured the leather collar completely. The only signal it was there was the gap where the fur was pressed down under it.

Bucky stood up his eyes shining happily. "Well, then let's go home shall we." Although he said it more like a statement than a question.

 _'I hope this won't end in me being sent back here... He looks nice enough, plus I sort of trust him. Possibly a foolish choice, but... we'll see.'_ I stood up and began to follow him out the door. The employees looked at me in shock before quickly going back to work.

We walked outside and began to walk down the street. The snow laid thickly on the ground as a small number of flakes fell from the sky. My fur was thick enough to keep me warm, but I still felt the chill due to my pelt not being fully formed yet. Stopping abruptly, Bucky looked back at me with a confused expression to match my own. My tongue darted out to catch one of the small white dots that fell from the sky. Bucky chuckled a bit, "First snow?". _'So that's what this is... snow...'_

I looked around at everything as we continued moving again, but easily stayed at Bucky's side. One eye was always watching him, but that was an involuntary action on my part. I wanted to trust him, I did... My trust was hard to get, but once you had it it would last through anything.

Eventually, we reached a building a little bit hidden from the rest of the world. It had black, metal stairs that led to a higher floor with doors on both levels. Bucky began to climb up the stairs and I followed -with a bit of difficulty... and let out a huff of frustration, _"Darn stairs... why couldn't it have been a ramp?"._

Bucky went over to a door and began to unlock it. I, however, walked a little ways away, putting my nose to the ground. There was another scent here, stale by now but it was laid down over and over again. Whoever made this traveled this way often. _'A friend of Bucky? They smell remarkably similar...'_

"Mallow?" Bucky called out my name and I walked back over, entering the house-like apartment thing. I looked around the room before sniffing around thoroughly in every crack and crevice. _'That scent from outside is in here too, they must be a friend of Bucky. Or a relative...'_

I looked outside in surprise as the sun was beginning to go down, filling the room with a soft orange glow. _'It's amazing how fast time went by today... usually, days are slower.'_ I rolled my eyes, ' _But then again I'm constantly on edge, so that isn't surprising.'._

A yawn escaped my jaws and Bucky chuckled. "Come on sleepyhead." He began to walk into another room and I followed. He reached into a tiny room and pulled out a blanket. Folding it up into a rectangle, he set it on the floor. I pad over to it and sniffed at it before climbing on. The fluffy material caused a soft sigh to come from me as I settled down comfortably. My eyes were already drooping by the time Bucky gave a light pat on my head and walked out of the room.

——Time skip: 11:00pm——

I woke up to a pitch-black room, but the warmth of the house was comforting. I saw Bucky laying on his back in the bed, snoring softly in the peace of the night. I got up and walked over to the foot of the bed before lightly jumping up onto it. Padding over to him I looked at his features, peaceful and happy as he slept. _'Should I...'_  
  


I shook my head. _'To hell with it.'_ I laid down on his left side between his arm and torso, my muzzle resting on his chest as it rose and fell with every deep breath. My eyes began to close again, but this time peace overcame my mind as I laid there by Bucky, feeling his slow heartbeat under my chin.

Sleep came easy, and no nightmares plagued my mind that night.


	5. Similar, Yet Different

——9:00am——  
——10th of February, 1939——

Over the next four days, Bucky and I got closer and closer. I took to sleeping next to Bucky on his left side, I think we both took comfort out of it.   
My throat was too harsh to make very soft or happy noises, but there was a tell in the growls that emitted from my throat. Nobody else could hear it, but in the quiet growls that took the place of barking, there was a crooning note. Bucky had easily begun to listen for it when we officially met, and now could pick it out without any thought at all.

I woke up that morning to noises in the kitchen. Lifting my head off the blanket, my jaws opened in a yawn. Looking around the room and seeing Bucky gone, I let out a puzzled huff. _'How that man got up without waking me is a mystery...'_

I rose to my paws and jumped stiffly off the bed and pad into the living room. I stretched my limbs, my forepaws out in front as my chest lowered to the ground. A yawn escaped my jaws again before I straightened up and began to pad into the kitchen.

"Morning Mallow" Bucky greeted me with a slightly raspy morning voice as I walked in.

" _Mornin'' a_ soft huff was his answer as I reached my water bowl. I drank my fill before crossing the kitchen to find my empty food bowl. Originally the bowls were right next to each other, but I had moved the water and food bowls to be separate myself. After I continued moving them Bucky gave up on putting them back. He simply let me move them, and that ended with them on opposite sides of the room. Why I moved them was beyond me, but I didn't try to stop myself.

An amused huff occurred as I picked up the empty bowl in my mouth. I dropped it at Bucky's feet as my ears flattened down sideways, eyes slightly widened, and my head tilted. I learned that not even Bucky was immune to 'puppy eyes', so it was something I made a point to pick up quickly. He narrowed his eyes, but I could see how much he was struggling not to give in. "Ohh, alright." He sighed in fake exasperation and filled up my bowl before grabbing his own breakfast and heading to the living room. _'Knew it, nobody can resist the puppy eyes!'_

I carefully picked up the bowl and walked out before settling on the floor next to Bucky. Another yawn escaped me as I dug in, eating quickly and neatly. I looked out the window, listening to the sounds outside; car horns, the occasional barking of a dog, a soft murmur of people talking and walking around the streets. Watching the occasional flake of snow fall past the window.

I didn't notice Bucky extending his hand towards my ears until he gently flicked the floppy end up, causing it to bounce a couple of times. My head whipped around as I looked at him, very confused yet amused at the action. Bucky chuckled a bit "At least now I have your attention.".

I gave an amused and annoyed huff _"There are better ways..."_

"Oh don't be like that. Anyways," he paused to gently stroke the fur on my neck, "we're going to meet a very good friend of mine today. You remember I was telling you about Steve?"

 _'Oh yeah, Steve. I remember... apparently he's a small guy, short and skinny. He also gets into fights a lot... or according to you. If I'm being honest, he sounds like me... just small.'_ I yawned again before picking up my bowl, heading to the kitchen, and putting it on the floor.

"Well, we're going out today to meet him at a diner. Don't worry, they'll allow you inside. I picked it for that reason." I gave a small grunt of acknowledgment as I walked past Bucky, who had moved into the kitchen after me. He gently flicked my ear again and I twitched it, only making the flop bounce a bit more.

I laid down in the living room near the couch in the corner, waiting for when we would leave. Bucky entered the bedroom and I heard the shower start up. Out of habit, I began to make a few rounds around the home. Call it... anxiety... My months of being on edge from Lip-Lip and the pack had rubbed off on me. Now I would make rounds wherever I resided to make sure that whoever I cared for would be harmed by something they didn't see.

Bucky came out and began toweling his hair to dry it before combing the brown mess on his head. I gave a small amused snort _'Good thing I don't have to worry about that all that often. But then again I keep my fur as groomed as I can all the time so I guess it compensates.'_  
  
  


It was around 9:30 am by the time we left the home. Buck was in his brown uniform and I still had the leather collar around my neck. My dark black and brown fur complimented his uniform as we walked. My long legs enabled me to easily keep up with Bucky as we walked down the street.

I wasn't on a lead, but then again I didn't need to be. Bucky trusted me not to run off or anything, and I was perfectly content to walk alongside him.

I got quite a few odd looks from people and my tail lowered self-consciously. I didn't like being the center of attention, and I loathed being laughed at. I could hold my own in a fight, but the moment I was the center of attention I wanted to hide away.

We entered a small building, the scent of food wafting out from the door and filling the room. Bucky walked over to a small booth and gave a short hug to the blonde man who got up at his approach. _'Is this Steve?'_

"Hey Steve. How you been?" Bucky pulled back from the hug, but kept his hand on their shoulder.

_'Well, that answered my question... Wait, I can smell dry blood on him... That fits the description of him getting into fights a lot. Plus he's moving like he's sore.'_

"Alright _,_ you?" His voice was soft and slightly lower-pitched, but overall had a friendly note to it.

"I'm fine. I want you to meet a friend of mine," _'Friend? I don't want to burst your bubble but we live together! Also that rhymed.'_ "Mallow."

Steve looked at me and knelt down. _'He has blue eyes too... although his are more of a baby blue...that and they have just enough green mixed in to make them slightly turquoise. Bucky's are a lighter slate blue, and mine are dark gray-blue.'_ "Hey." He slowly extended his hand towards my head and I growled softly in response

" _Hi..."_ Steve took his hand back before rising to his feet. Both him and Bucky sat down in the booth and I laid down under the table. ' _I don't see why Steve is called small... Yes he's thin, but I'd say he's around 5'5", no 5'6" sounds better.'_ I let out a huff, _'Taller than me that's for sure...'_

"Sorry, she won't let anybody pet her unless she trusts them first." Bucky began to reassure his friend as I softly whined an apology, my eyes looking at him.

Steve gave a small smile at my apology before shaking his head. "It's alright, I'm not bothered. When'd you get her?"

It was at this point I tuned out, resting my head on my paws as the two friends talked and caught up with each other. My gray-blue eyes closed as I tried to relax on the surprisingly comfortable floor. I dozed off, but never fully lost consciousness due to being in an unfamiliar environment.

About an hour later, I rose to my paws and gently placed a paw on Bucky's thigh. I looked up at him and tilted my head, a silent question in my gaze. He nodded his head and I walked to the door before leaving. I followed the scent of grass and did my business before starting back to the diner.

On the way back, a small terrier in a woman's arms began to bark and growl worriedly. My legs stiffened on instinct, but I ignored them as I entered the diner again. Walking over to Bucky and Steve, I sat down again beside the table.

"What's wrong Mallow?" Steve's question caused me to look over confused, before I realized he was right. My ears and lips were twitching occasionally and my fur slightly bristling.

I softly growled with an apologetic look in my eyes, " _I'll be alright in a minute, sorry..."_

My apologetic expression turned into shock as I saw Steve seemed to understand the intent behind the growl with a nod. _'I wonder if he will pick up the crooning in my growls as fast as Bucky did...'_

"A dog most likely saw her outside, right?" I looked towards Bucky and gave a huff.

Steve looked confused so I pushed Bucky with my muzzle and let out a soft growl, _"Well explain it to him. He can't understand me, so that's up to you."_

"Dogs don't like her for some reason. Anytime she is seen by one they growl and bark at her. And -since she hasn't had the best experiences with dogs- whether or not she wants to her instincts will kick in. Bristling fur, stiff legs, that sort of thing." Bucky elaborated and I gave a satisfied grunt before going under the table again, laying down at their feet with my head up.

The conversation switched around a lot, more often than not settling back on me. They talked for hours and ate. Steve quickly got on my good side because he would drop pieces of his food down for me. If there's one way to my heart it's through my stomach.

At one point, Steve put his hand under the table, palm up and fingers gently outstretched. I sniffed at it, before gently touching it with my damp nose. Pulling away, he took his hand and put it back in his lap.  
  
  


——Time skip: 1:00pm——

I had dozed off again under the table, Bucky's hand sometimes gently scratching my head or rubbing my ears as a reassurance. We had been there a total of 4 hours, and I got in naps so I was happy. Once we got outside again, they gave a quick farewell to one another and Steve knelt down to look at me. He put out his hand again with the palm up. I sniffed at it before placing my chin on his palm. He gently began to rub under my muzzle and a crooning growl rumbled from my throat. Steve smiled before taking his hand back and giving a short hug to Bucky. "Stay safe, jerk."

"Punk" I snorted with amusement at their interaction, laughter in my eyes and my tail wagging slightly.

Steve looked down at me, "Yeah you too Fluffy."

My eyes widened, _"Fluffy?! Ohohhh that's how it's going to be is it?"_

I gently took his hand in my teeth, biting down just hard enough to leave imprints of them before letting go. He looked at his hand before looking at me, one eyebrow raised as I wagged my tail good naturally. I opened my mouth a little showing my teeth in a cheeky grin that made them chuckle before parting ways.

We began to head back to the home and upon reaching it, Bucky began to unlock the door. I stood a little ways away, looking out at the street. "You want to stay out for a while? At least until sunset?"

My eyes widened with shock at his proposal, and at the trust he has in me. I trot over and he stroked my neck and shoulders. I let out a soft growl, my eyes shining with gratitude. " _Thank you."_ I trot off, my tail wagging a little before stopping at the stairs. I looked back at Bucky and stood there. He shook his head before walking into the house and closing the door.

I jumped down the steps, walking out onto the streets. I looked around before beginning a trot down the sidewalk. The drifts of snow blew over the road with the light breeze as the snow began to fall a bit heavier than before. The people walking the streets began to dissipate as they fled from the cold.

I was walking for while before an alarming scent drifted across my nose. Blood. I put my nose to the air and began to follow the scent. Eventually, I heard the sound of blows and the clattering of metal cans. Rounding the corner, I saw a sight that wasn't that surprising.

There was Steve, getting beaten up in an alley by a couple of men. He just kept getting back up again and again. I couldn't help the spark of respect that formed in my perception of him. No matter if it was stupid...

A growl harshly rumbled from my throat as my fur began to bristle. The men looked over at me as my eyes went dark with warning.

Steve had gotten up again and was leaning against the wall, his lip was bleeding but overall seemed fine. I made eye contact and he gave me a small nod to signal he was okay. The mere sight of him hurt caused the growl to rise up into a loud, harsh, and violent sound that was filled with hatred. My ears flattened down against my head, fur bristling so much it looked like it was alive with static, and legs stiff with my tail held up horizontally.

The men shared a laugh as they began to point at me. At that moment, something snapped inside me and I became a raging demon. My lips lifted in a snarl as I rushed forward jumping onto one of them with my 90lbs of muscle and rage. He threw his arms up to try and fend off my teeth as they slashed open his forearms. The other man snapped into action a bit too late and kicked me off his friend.

I rolled in mid air before landing on my paws and skidding a little bit. I was snarling terribly from where I stood, now next to Steve. The bridge of my nose was wrinkled as my lips trembled, my eyes dark with rage.

The men got up and began to walk away, not fast enough in my opinion. I began to trot quickly after them, my claws clicking against the ground. They instantly moved faster, running as best they could out of the alley.

My snarl died down as my fur laid down flat again. I pad back over to Steve, the residual rage from their laughter remained in my eyes. However it was quickly drowned with worry as I gently sniffed him over, occasionally nudging him with my muzzle to check for any bad injuries.

"I'm alright. How are you? I mean you got kicked pretty hard..." I wasn't going to deny the pain in my chest. Nothing was broken, but it hurt a lot. We're in the same position, hurt but nothing too serious considering we threw ourselves into a fight.

 _"Come on, let's go home."_ I let out a pleading wine before gently pushing Steve forward. He began to walk on his own down the street with me following him. He reached a home and unlocked the door. Turning around, Steve knelt down and gently began to rub the top of my head. "Thank you..."

I whined before closing my eyes, pulling away after a moment. " _Stay safe... punk..."_ A flash of amusement shone in my eyes.

"Goodbye, Fluffy." He went into the home with that comment and shut the door. I snorted before putting my nose to work, retracing along my scent trail to find my way back home. I reached Bucky's home at about 3:30, 4:00 o'clock. I gently scratched on the door and he let me in.

"Hey, how'd it go!" Buck began to rub my neck with one hand while the other rested on his knee. 

_"Oh you know, just had to save a certain blonde from two men with both if us getting a little hurt. No big deal or anything."_ I let out a small grunt before yawning.

Bucky nodded and went back to whatever he was doing, while I went to the bedroom and jumped onto the bed. Putting my nose down towards my closely bunched feet, I circled couple times before my legs buckled beneath me. I settled down with a grunt and put my head down before falling asleep, the iron taste of blood still slightly staining my mouth.


	6. Goodbye Isn't the End

——June, 1943——

The years went past and Bucky, Steve, and I got closer and closer. Both of them were able to easily hear the croon that appeared in my communicative growls, but it was still invisible to others' ears.

Bucky was sometimes sent off to fight on the front lines for the military starting in 1941, and each time I would accompany him. The idea of Buck bringing a canine with him was challenged at first, but then again I snuck on the boat anyways so their protests didn't really matter that much. After the first mission where I snuck in and did remarkably well at protecting Bucky and taking out enemies, I was welcomed in for as long as Barnes was in the military. I was even given honorary, no pun intended, dog tags with "Mallow" written on them, and "Sergeant James B. Barnes" on the back with his info.

I had grown over the years to my full height of 3'4", and a weight of 110 lbs. at 5 -almost 6- years of age. Being big and well muscled, while maintaining a lean and wiry body shape and strength. My legs had grown to be longer and thinner, my fur was long and thick, my muzzle and ears were sharp and long as well (except the case of my ears due to -well- the flops that took over half the ear), my tail was bushy and almost brushed against the floor by a few inches, and my senses were sharp as well. My of smell was sharp enough to track something at nearly 2 miles away, hearing allowed me to listen for something at 6-10 miles away (hearing movement of enemy soldiers was easy enough, especially when they're less than that distance), and keen eyesight that could detect the smallest movement and see well in the dark. As well as having 1" long canines, I was a fast and lethal asset on the battlefield and didn't wear armor as to not hinder my movement (although Bucky had been trying to get me to wear something as a precaution). Oddly enough, my markings and colorations changed. The browns and blacks from my German Shepherd heritage still showed, but the white had moved to being all over in the fur on my torso, chest, and jaw. The browns also lightened to be a gray cream color that became mixed throughout my pelt.

\----10:30am----

After recently getting back from a mission, Bucky and I were taking a bit of time off. That of course meant that he was sleeping in with waking up every few hours, and I was walking around the house and napping. Overall, we were simply relaxing and savoring the time we had before being shot at again.

I heard the gentle clinking of Bucky's dog tags and the rustling of blankets as he got up for real this time. A yawn escaped my jaws as I looked up from my comfortable position on the couch. I chuffed at Bucky as he came out of the bedroom, " _Good morning."._

He turned his head to look at me before going to make coffee, "Morning Mallow. How long do you think this break will last?"

I looked thoughtfully at him as my head tilted. A single grunt was a clear enough answer. _'Not long enough... I wish we could take breaks more often, but at the same time, I love the feeling of running freely on the battlefield. Or really just anywhere.'_ I longed for the feeling of wind in my fur and fresh dirt beneath my paws as I ran, fast and free. The smell of upturned dirt, sweat, and gunpowder as I protect Bucky and take out enemies silently.

I scratched at an itchy spot under my jaw, the dog tags clinking together with the movement. Shaking myself, I jumped off the couch and made my way into the kitchen where a bowl of food awaited me. I ate my fill before crossing the kitchen to the water bowl and drinking almost all of it.

Bucky ate his breakfast and left for a shower before we go to the post office. I heard the water start and sat down to groom my own fur. Nosing through my fur I began to look for knots and debris stuck in my thick pelt, tugging with my teeth if I found something. By the time I finished, Bucky had gotten out of the shower and was getting his shoes on.  
"Ready?" he looked over, a smile on his face and blue eyes shining.

I chuffed as I trotted over, and he opened the door for both of us. _'Stupid lack of thumbs...'_ He shut the door and we head off down the road in the summer warmth. My thick pelt was in its summer thinness, so the heat wasn't that bad. That didn't mean I wasn't relieved when we entered the cool building.

We took our time with everything, so it was almost noon by the time we reached the post office. There was an envelope addressed to Bucky, and oddly enough me as well. He took it out and opened it, eyes darting back and forth as he read the contents.

I waited patiently until he looked up at me. I looked at him expectantly, my head tilted to the side. "We got our orders; Sergeant Barnes and Mallow, 107th division." My tail wagged a little bit at the prospect of being able to run again, but at the same time worry clouded my gaze for Bucky since it was a battlefield.

 _"Let's go find Steve, we need to tell him we got our orders."_ I chuffed at Bucky and began to walk to the door. He shook his head and began to follow me as I sped up to a trot upon reaching the street. _'Right, I forgot you can't understand me...'_ an annoyed huff escaped me as we walked.

——Time skip: 7:00pm——

We ended up going home for a while before going to find Steve. I found him first with the sound of impacts relatively close by. Lo and behold there he was fighting somebody almost twice his size in an alley.

"Hey! Pick on someone your own size!" Bucky strode forward and grabbed the man, pulling him back and punching him before kicking him away.

I pad over to Steve and worriedly sniffed at him, a low wine in my throat as my ears angled to the side. "I'm alright, thanks Mallow." I nodded my head and helped him up while Bucky picked up his enlistment papers.

"Oh you're from Paramus now?" Bucky sounded slightly annoyed. I didn't blame him, this was Steve's fourth try to enlist in the army. I couldn't help but understand his continued tries, he just wanted to help protect his country. Even I got into the military, but then again that was only because of Bucky...

Steve began to brush himself off and looked up at Bucky. "You get your orders?"

"Sergeant James Barnes and Mallow, 107th infantry." Steve stroked the fur along my neck and shoulders both to reassure me and to make himself subconsciously feel better.

I sniffed the air at the smell of something good nearby. Putting my nose to the ground, I began to follow the scent to a trash can nearby. Knocking it over, I dug directly through it to a piece of meat hidden in the trash. "Mallow, what are you doing?" I ignored Bucky's amused question and ate quickly after giving it a quick sniff to make sure it was safe. I turned back and swiped my tongue over my jaws.

"Come on, its our last night. We gotta celebrate.

"Where are we going?"

"The future." _'If you mean the Stark Expo, oh great... loud conventions. I love those! Not.'_

——8:35pm——

We reached the Expo and as predicted, it was very loud. I saw two women in front of us and growled softly. "Hey cheer up." Bucky's comment caused me to look at him with an expression that read 'seriously?'.

"What did you tell her about me?" Steve sounded reserved and tired, we both knew that whoever it was wouldn't be interested in him. No woman has ever given Steve the chance to express himself. I sighed before tuning back into the conversation.

"Only the good stuff." Bucky had a smile on his face as he greeted the girls. I however hung back by Steve. _'Might as well keep him company, she's just going to go to Bucky anyway, so better that I'm here for Steve.'_ I gently nuzzled Steve's hand and he stroked my neck. I let out a soft crooning growl as he continued to pet my thick mane of fur.

The ladies looked at me in a panic when they heard my growl. _'Oh yeah, forgot they can't hear the croon, only a growl. Oops!'_

"It's alright, she's friendly. This is Mallow." Bucky tried to reassure the ladies and my ear twitched in a noncommittal greeting.

We all walked off to a stage. And merged into the crowd. I couldn't see, but then again I didn't really care so no loss there. I watched as Steve tried to offer popcorn to his date and she rejected it. In a very impolite manner, I might add... so a soft warning growl rumbled in my throat. Her eyes widened and she moved away a little. Steve began to stroke the top of my head, rubbing my ears to calm me down. _'It's not fair to Steve. Just because he's small women ignore him. He_ _is a_ _really good person if anybody would bother to get to know him...'_

I didn't pay attention to whatever happened on stage, mostly due to being unable to see. I only really tuned in when a loud crash occurred. I still don't know what happened...

I noticed Steve begin to slip away and I followed him, curious about what he was doing. I saw the recruitment center and immediately figured it out. Catching up to him, he was standing on a little platform that would show his face in a uniform. Nosing Steve's hand to get his attention, I looked up at him a knowing look on my face. He looked down at me and smiled sadly. "I know, but I have to try. I need to do my part, can you understand that?" I lightly chuffed and gently nudged him in the direction of the desk where you get papers before walking there myself.

He looked at me in surprise before catching up and walking beside me. I heard familiar footsteps behind us and turned around. I gently hit Steve's leg with my tail to get his attention before walking to meet Bucky. He pat my head before looking towards Steve. I didn't pay attention due to something catching my attention; a man. He looked to be on the older side, and I stared unblinkingly at him. He turned his head from where he was looking and lowered his gaze to me. I turned my head to look where his gaze had led, and saw Steve. Looking back, I narrowed my dark eyes as my ears flattened down. He seemed to carefully look me over, shock and interest registering on his features as his eyes traveled from my long legs, to my thick mane and tail.

I heard the familiar sound of Bucky and Steve hugging and turned away from the strange man. Steve looked down at me before kneeling in front of me as I approached. He began to rub the sides of my neck with both hands as he made eye contact. "Keep Bucky safe and you stay safe as well, okay?"

I pushed my head forward into his chest and began to snuggle him. My floppy ears were the only thing visible from my head as I gave a crooning growl. Pulling back, I chuffed a farewell before padding over to Bucky. "Bye Fluffy." I huffed at my nickname as Bucky and I walked over to the girls.

They ignored me and focused on Bucky -which was fine by me-, while I paused to look back at Steve. He gave a final wave before disappearing into the recruitment center. I turned back around and caught up with Bucky.

I let out a chuff to get his attention. He looked down at me with a confused expression. "What's up?"

I looked away before looking back and scratched at the ground with a forepaw. Bucky seemed to understand and nodded his head. I wagged my tail a bit before trotting away, quickly speeding up to an easy lope.

I wandered around the city for a while before going back home. Rather than going inside, I laid down in front of the door in the coolness of night. The dog tags around my neck clinked as they hit the ground. A small warm breeze seemed to comfort me as I spent my last night in Brooklyn before our Europe mission. A yawn escaped my jaws and I fell asleep.


	7. War Changes More Than Your Mind

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Slight warnings for Hydra and the main character(s) being captured, but that's to be expected. Also a warning for Mallow killing enemy soldiers, but no blood is mentioned (yet).

——5:00am——

Chirping of songbirds awoke me from sleep as the city and its inhabitants began to rise. The sun was still a little ways from rising, but I stood up anyway. My jaws opened in a yawn and I stretched my limbs, my tail stretched upwards as well.

I listened into the home and just barely detected Bucky's snores. I sighed with relief and head out to go get some food. Yes, I could just jump in the window or find a way inside, but I wanted to get used to scavenging again. I would usually hunt or scavenge for food when Bucky and I fought on the front lines to conserve food supplies. Plus I could go a lot longer than the soldiers on little to no food. My gait sped up to an easy lope, going a little over 13-15mph as I navigated the streets and alleys of Brooklyn. My nose up, I followed a promising scent.

After about half an hour, I found a small flock of pigeons walking around on the ground. I crouched down, making sure the slight breeze blew towards me. There I waited... silently... my muscles coiled in anticipation for my chance.

One wandered a bit too close...

With an alarm call, it began to fly off in a panic, the others following suit.

I took my chance and short forward, leaping into the air, my jaws snapping shut one of the bird's bodies. It struggled in my teeth before I bit down hard, the audible crunching of bone hit my ears as blood began to slowly fill my mouth.

I trot off with the dead bird in my jaws, blood occasionally dripping from my teeth as I head back home. My stomach growled and my mouth began to water as my nose filled with the scent of the dead bird. A small growl escaped my throat as I resisted the urge to eat the bird now.

I made it back to the house after another half hour and gently scratched the door before settling down outside to eat. I tore into the flesh of the bird, blood beginning to coat my muzzle and teeth. As I ate, bones crunched as I chewed and swallowed the meat of the bird.

I finished quickly and swiped my tongue around my jaws to clean off some of the blood. Getting up, I scratched the door with my forepaw again, a bit louder this time. It opened and I entered the home. I looked up and was met with the sight of Bucky in his uniform, he knelt down and checked my dog tags and collar. "Ready to go?"

I chuffed and grabbed his hat before handing it to him as we left the house. Bucky turned around to lock the door before we began to head for the boat.

——7:30am——0730——

Nobody from the 107th had met me yet, so the surprised looks I received were expected. Bucky had gone to Wisconsin with the troops here to train during the winter, but I had stayed behind that time. I followed Bucky onto the ship, my dog tags laying over my collar and clinking together occasionally with every step. We walked over to the railing and looked out. I shut my eyes, relishing in the breeze that ruffled my fur and sent the salty smell of the ocean to my nose.

"Sergeant Barnes." A voice called out and I opened my eyes and turned around to meet the man. I didn't catch his name, but then again I didn't really care. That was... until he looked at me and got a bit closer. A soft growl rumbled in my throat as I narrowed my eyes at him, _"Don't even think about it..."_

He stopped and looked towards Bucky, a silent warning in his eyes before he walked away. I huffed in frustration before I felt a familiar hand begin to rub my ears, gently flicking the flops up so they bounced. I felt myself calm down completely as he stroked my fur as a crooning growl made itself known.

——Time skip: 7 hours later——  
——2:35pm——1435 Army Time——

I rose from my nap as the boat's horn blared, signaling that we were docking. I got impatient and stood up, moving to the side where the docks lay. Hearing Bucky's footsteps follow me, I knew he wouldn't worry about where I was after doing this. I went over to the railing, seeing that the dock was just barely over 5' away. Backing up, my muscles tensed in anticipation before I bolted forward. I bunched my hind legs beneath me and launched my body over the rail and onto the docks. Skidding to a halt, I shook out my fur before looking back at the boat and picking out Bucky's face easily.

I sat down to wait as people milled about around me. A whistle sounded and I pinpointed its location before getting up and weaving my way towards it. As expected, Bucky was waiting for me with his bag at the edge of the crowd. He gave me a smile as I walked up, and we head off together with everybody else in classic military fashion.

——Time skip: a few days later——  
Location: Azzano - near Italy

We walked through the trees in relative silence, the occasional conversation popping up between the soldiers. The sound of weaponry occasionally moving in hands and marching footsteps being the constant interruptions in the silence. We had been moving since morning and it was still relatively early.

I trot along the outside, roughly 10' from the group and strafing towards the front. My senses were alert; ears pricked, eyes open, and nose occasionally smelling the air for anything suspicious.

The air began to warm up as the sun continued to rise higher into the sky. Birds occasionally chirped in the trees as my sharp ears listened to everything around us. Our company leader gave the word to halt and they all stopped in their respective formation. As he began to talk and give out orders, I trot away into the trees with my eyes and ears open. A scent crossed my path as I put my nose to the ground, and I recognized it almost instantly. _'Rabbit. The scent is relatively fresh.'_ I studied the tracks seeing irregularities in the pattern. _'It could be either injured or old... both of which make my job easier, or it was in a panic...'_

I followed the tracks, moving velvet-footed across the ground as I tracked down a possible meal. A soft rustling made me freeze and swivel my ears, pinpointing the sound. I looked to the left and began to creep forward, my head down as I got closer. A tiny movement caught my eye as a rabbit hopped into view.

My mouth began to water as it bent down to eat, oblivious to my presence. I crept forward... slowly... softly...

It was no further than 10' away, almost within striking distance...

It lifted its head.

At the same time, I stiffened and lifted mine...

Something was wrong...

The distant sound of footsteps and an all too familiar smell getting closer to the 107th. A growl softly rose in my throat as I moved swiftly and silently over the ground, like a phantom as my paws appeared to glide over the ground. The sound of gunfire caused me to lengthen my stride to a run as I hurried to the battle zone.

Coming across HYDRA soldiers, I silently jumped on their backs. My jaws shut around their necks, twisting to the side and snapping them before anything could happen. Darting around swiftly from straggler to straggler, I thinned out a bit of the enemy force.

A whistle rang out over the battlefield and I responded immediately, running over whilst avoiding projectiles that flew by. I jumped into a ditch and crouched next to Bucky as he fired at the enemy. He nodded towards a small group of 3-4 soldiers hiding behind a few trees and I darted off. Approaching the small grove, I leapt in. Quickly knocking them over and killing the soldiers before carefully making my way back to Buck. I was panting from the constant sprinting as I stopped for a moment to recover my breath and figure out my next target... or targets... whichever I came across first.

I kept on going for stragglers or very small groups of enemies as the fight wore on. Alas, eventually it was too much. I saw more forces coming as I rushed back to Bucky. Upon reaching him in a small patch of brush, he looked at me before lightly shaking his head. The message was clear; 'We weren't going to win this one'. I didn't do anything as he took my freely dangling dog tags and tucked them under my collar, both of which were hidden by my thick pelt. A small whimper escaped me as he gently rubbed my ears, both to comfort himself and me at the same time.

We were surrounded by troops, and a familiar instinct began to kick in as I stood protectively by Bucky's side. Around 50 soldiers had escaped capture, but the rest of us were not so fortunate. The Nazi soldiers escorted us to a prison as I stuck to Bucky like glue, lowly growling the entire time.

They pushed the 107th into circular prison cells and around 10 of them tore me away from Bucky.

 _"Get off me!"_ I snarled and slashed at the men with my fangs as they tried to restrain me. A muzzle was successfully attached to my head as they began to drag me off. Rendered unable to snarl, I settled on a loud rumbling grow from my throat as my ears flattened down and fur began to bristle. One man came over with a needle and injected me with a clear substance. My eyelids began to droop as I fought the tiredness pulling at my limbs and mind. The edges of my vision began to darken as I began to lean and sway, before finally falling to the floor and falling into a forced sleep on the icy concrete.

——Time skip: ??:??am/pm——

How long had it been? Days, weeks, months..? I didn't know anymore... I was chained up in the corner. Shackles were around my paws, connected to the floor by thick chains. There was a heavy metal collar around my neck, and a muzzle of the same material tightly attached to my head. Everything was chained to the floor, leaving me almost without the ability to move. I sat there in the inky blackness of the room for who knows how long before people started coming in the room on occasion. All I knew was that at predictable intervals, men would come into my room and beat me with blunt objects, cut my flesh with sharp knives, and lash at me with whips. 

They tried to break me, beat me into submission and silence. Alas there was one thing they didn't bargain for, I never gave in. There was always another growl to rumble in my throat, and always another instance of me getting up, over and over again. No matter how much they tried, I always had another growl to give while standing up again. As they left with frustration a defiant growl would follow them out as I stood on spread paws to prevent me from falling over.

Eventually, it changed a little bit. The minuscule portions I got suddenly got a bit bigger. Yes, I was grateful for the increase in food, but it was a little suspicious... besides the beatings didn't change so I was a little too preoccupied to pay attention.

I heard footsteps coming down the hall... about 5 men with one more trailing behind. The men came in and I growled while standing up, my ears went down as I stared at them. The group of five came forward and began to restrain me even further than the chains already were.

I couldn't move, the muzzle preventing me from lashing out at them. The straggler opened the door, revealing themselves as someone in a lab coat. The thing that caused me to struggle more was a large needle filled with a blue liquid, it screamed bad news as I desperately tried to escape. The growl grew until it almost got louder than the chains scraping against the floor with my movement.

They reached for my throat and plunged the needle deep into my skin. I felt a searing pain begin to spread throughout my entire body, all of it stemming from the injection site. It felt like my insides were freezing, burning, going numb, and tingling with activity all at the same time. The men let me go as I fell to the floor, my muscles spasticity contracting as I writhed on the floor in pain. Eventually, my muscles all contracted at the same time, leaving me a pained ball with my muscles almost snapping my bones. At first whimpers and muffled cries of pain had escaped me, then I clenched my teeth and started growling with every short and quick breath.

This torture went on for what seemed like forever as I lost track of time. The pain finally subsided as I laid on the floor panting and limp. My whole body hurt as my muscles went limp, exhausted from the hours upon hours of being so tense I couldn't even move.

I was mentally and physically exhausted from the pain, but couldn't fall asleep. I simply laid there, recovering as I rested my aching limbs on the cold concrete floor.

Eventually, I fell asleep... but I never registered it happening, so great was my exhaustion.


	8. An Unexpected Arrival

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning for blood and depictions of mutilated bodies. It's too severe, but it's what the warning is for so if you're sensitive to that sort of thing, tread with caution.

——November 1943——  
——??:??——

Memories flashed in front of my eyes as I laid there on the icy cold concrete ground. My muscles were weak from lack of use, but considering I hadn't even twitched for the past 4 hours that wasn't surprising. Oddly enough, I was remembering the winter of 1942 when Bucky went to Wisconsin for training with the 107th. I had stayed behind on that mission due to Steve. He seemed to get into a fight every other day, and Bucky didn't need my help on this trip. So I stayed behind to be a companion for Steve. I remembered walking beside him as we went around Brooklyn, neither of us oblivious to the horrors of war happening all around the world against the Nazis.

They had injected me again, what I assume to be quite a few hours ago, and the pain stopped around four hours before. That was when I stopped moving to rest my aching muscles, and since hadn't found a reason to move at all. Each breath pushed out a soft growl, stopping occasionally as I took a breath.

A muffled whistle sounded and my dark eyes flicked up at the familiar sound. Every once in a while, I would hear Bucky whistle from wherever he was. It would echo down the halls and carry to my room, but it was still muffled from the thick walls. My mouth opened as much as it could in the muzzle as a soft vocalization hummed out from my throat. It was filled with sadness, pain, and woe, but the real noise that echoed through the hallways was me lifting my weak paw and letting the metal shackle fall to the floor with a clang. These back and forth noises somehow acted as sounds of hope to the two of us. My vocalizations could be heard by the entirety of the 107th from their cells, and served as a subtle reassurance that I was okay. Although that was a side benefit, Bucky and I simply wanted to know if the other was okay...

I closed my eyes again, one ear was torn a bit with a nick in the side and fresh scars lay hidden under my fur.

A single set of footsteps hurried down the hall and I recognized it as being Arnim Zola, the head scientist of HYDRA. Not a moment later, another set of footsteps came from further down the hall to the left. They were big, belonging to someone at least 6' tall, but the tempo was oddly familiar at the same time. They didn't reach my door, but instead crashed into another one. I didn't hear anything until muffled voices began to get clearer as now two people walked down the hall.

"Did it hurt?" An achingly familiar voice reached my ears; Bucky.

"A little." My ears shot up at that voice. ' _No... it isn't him... it can't be... right?'_

"Is it permanent?"

"So far!"

I shifted my foot and caused the chain to scrape against the floor. The footsteps stopped nearby my door as they heard it. A soft whimper escaped my jaws as the door was opened, but it turned into a soft growl as an unfamiliar figure walked in. He held a shield and was taller than Bucky, but his baby blue eyes were achingly familiar.

"Mallow?" He sounded shocked and began to walk slowly towards me. I struggled to my feet in the heavy chains and growled a little louder through the muzzle. "It's me, it's Steve."

I froze, my eyes traveling over his face as I began to recognize him. It was Steve... although he was a lot bigger than the 5'6" man we left in Brooklyn. He reached for the shackles around my paws and easily broke them open. He grabbed the muzzle and forced it open before moving to the heavy collar.

I looked up at him, studying his eyes to be sure it really was Steve. The baby blue eyes with the perfect amount of green mixed in to tint the color slightly. I pushed my head into his broad chest and snuggled it against him, a crooning growl rumbling in my throat. the movement reminding me of my stiff muscles as they ached in protest.

He stroked my neck and shoulders softly before I removed my head and went over to Bucky. He knelt down and wrapped his arms around my shoulders as I lowered my head over his. We sat there for a moment before pulling away. "We need to go," Steve commented and then we left the room, him looking back often to make sure Bucky and I were keeping up. I noticed that he was a bit more muscular than before, and I seemed to be a bit stronger as well.

We reached an intersection where Zola had disappeared to the right. The sound of fleeing footsteps sounded to the left and I looked over. A HYDRA soldier was running in the opposite direction. A snarl rose up in my throat and I shot forward, bounding down the hall and jumping onto his back. My eyes were dark with rage as I pinned him and lunged forward, sinking my fangs into his throat. I tore open the jugular vein, blood pooling at my feet before running off. Fueled by rage and pent-up energy, I looked like a demon. My eyes dark, ears flattened against my head, fur bristling, and blood soaking my muzzle and paws.

I followed the scent of escaped soldiers and burst outside. I leapt into the fray, tearing the flesh and spilling the blood of the men who had tortured me. I had run off, chasing fleeing HYDRA soldiers and pulling them down like deer.

Eventually, all the soldiers of the 107th had escaped and destroyed the base. Steve and Bucky joined them outside and looked around. When they saw the aftereffects of my anger, there was no disguising the fear that flashed in everybody's eyes. There were bodies littering the ground. Their throats and other sections of their bodies torn open with huge pools of blood soaking the ground.

After they had recovered from their momentary shock and began the trek to base, Steve and Bucky in the lead.

——Time skip: 5 hours later——  
——1:45pm——

I had finally pulled down the final soldier, and the rage subsided as I was left alone in the trees. I caught my breath and looked around and realized I was alone. Lifting my muzzle, I began to trot off before speeding up to a fast but conservative lope. My muscles ached with exhaustion but I pushed through it, my muscles designed to ignore fatigue and exhaustion for long periods of time.

The scent of the 107th drifted along the breeze towards my sharp nose. I heard the rumbling of tanks as I caught up, my muscles begging for me to stop. Letting out a loud chuff I ran to the front of the company, making sure to keep my distance. I slowed down to a trot before I noticed my appearance: my muzzle, paws, and chest were soaked with blood and I looked just about ready to fall over.

"Mallow!" Luckily Bucky saw me through the trees and called out before jogging over. My tail wagged a little as I looked up at him, my eyes showing so much emotion at seeing him unharmed. "Jesus, what happened to you?" He touched my crimson-colored chest and neck fur with his hand, the blood rubbing off easily due to the sheer amount of it soaked into my fur.

 _"It's not mine don't worry_." I gave a small reassuring whine before swiping my tongue over my jaws, the metallic taste filling my mouth.

I looked up and swiveled my ears, listening for something. Finding it, I began to trot off, giving a little chuff as a farewell. After a little bit, I found the small running creek and waded in. The cold, clear water ran red as the blood began to rinse out of my thick pelt. I used my muzzle to rub the remaining blood out before getting out of the creek, my fur was dark and wet before I shook myself. Water droplets flew in every direction as my fur became damp and spiked.

I began the trek back to the group. My aching muscles starting to hurt from the continued movement as they went into fatigue. Bucky saw me running towards him and gave a small smile, his eyes shining. I slowed to a trot as I caught up before walking alongside him.

"Jump on one of the tanks." I looked up at him, confused by the statement. "You need to rest, ride on one of the tanks. At least until we stop for camp."

I huffed an acknowledgment before running at the closest tank and pushing myself off the ground onto it. The jump made my muscles scream in protest before dulling down to an ache again. My claws clicked against the metal as I circled a flat area on the front. I collapsed down and sighed with relief as my painful muscles were finally able to relax. My eyelids drooped and I yawned before falling into a deep sleep.

——Time skip: A few days later——  
——10:35am——

I had gained back my strength, but was still a bit malnourished. Only a couple of men had died due to injury, but there were quite a few that rode on the tanks due to their inability to move fast enough or their injuries.

I trot alongside Bucky between him and Steve as we marched into a camp. A woman jogged towards Steve and a soft growl rumbled out on instinct. He gently shook his head before looking back up at her.

"You're late." She had a British accent and stood with an air of confidence.

I see Steve pull out a damaged remote. "Couldn't call my ride."

That earned a snort of laughter as I shook my head. I saw a man walk up and looked over at Bucky. He rubbed my ears to comfort me. I didn't like crowds, so I was pretty uncomfortable right now.

"Hey!" I heard Bucky yell out and looked up to see him looking at Steve, "Let's hear it for Captain America!"

People began to cheer as Steve looked happily at Bucky and me. I decided to voice my support and let out a long, low, and loud howl. It drowned out the crowd and caused a few people to laugh at the sheer amount of happy emotion in the vocalization.

I lowered my head again and wagged my tail a little as I looked at Steve and Bucky. I gently hit Bucky's leg with my tail and pad off, eager to rest and get out of the crowd.

I had laid down in the dirt off to the side and dozed off, the loud noises of an army camp not bothering me that much.

After a while, footsteps came over and I lifted my head to see Bucky standing over me. "We're going to town, want to come?" I got up stiffly and followed him to a car. "We're going to get cleaned up at the base and go for drinks afterward." I huffed and jumped inside before laying on the floor.

After a couple hours, we got to the base and I jumped out of the car. I winced slightly with every step as my aching and stiff muscles screamed in protest of moving. We spent around 10-15 minutes there while Bucky cleaned up. I tried not to move due to the pain in my muscles, and to cover up the limp in my back left leg. I had pulled a muscle in my leg so any jostling or movement was excruciating.

"Why don't you stay here? Rest up and recover." Bucky's voice was filled with concern and I reluctantly chuffed an agreement. He knelt down and stroked my fur with a reassuring smile before standing up again and leaving.

I limped out into the base to find somewhere to rest without moving that often. I entered a room finding a huge table and Steve surrounded by military personnel. People were rushing around as Steve pointed out things on a table. He seemed to have finished as people began to move faster and more hurriedly.

I guess one person wasn't paying attention and tripped over me, their left leg colliding with my injured hind leg. I hadn't been paying attention, so at one moment I was standing and observing and the next I was in a pained heap on the floor.

I saw Steve's head snap up when I had yelped at the collision. I hadn't yelped since I was a puppy. A pained whimper escaped my throat as Steve gently picked me up, seeing now how badly I needed rest. He nodded a goodbye to the men and women in the room before carrying me easily out of the room.

I was carried into the lab and placed on the floor gently, a soft whimper hit his ears. I was allowing my wounded self to be visible, and that took quite a bit of trust. He stood up and quickly left the room, coming back with a big blanket. Gently placing me on it and wrapping it over my painful body to keep me comfortable.

I felt his hand gently begin to rub my ears as I fell asleep. Safe and warm for the first time in over a month.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I won't do this often, but I'd seriously recommend listening to "All the King's Horses" in the last half of this chapter.
> 
> This is almost all hurt so brace for that.

After a week of bed rest —forced on me by Steve and his mother-hen mentality— I recovered my strength back. Bucky almost never left my side, lulling me to sleep with his presence and gentle rubs to my ears. He occasionally flicked the flops on my ears upward and earned a look of amusement paired with twitching ears.

Being in the lab 24/7 wasn't as bad as I originally thought. One of the men —he was unintentionally introduced to me as Howard by a passing conversation— with a mustache occasionally blew something up and triggered a memory of the battlefield, but it was entertaining to see him get scolded. He built metal objects and weapons for the soldiers. I see him sometimes working on shields, no doubt for Steve. 

I entered the hallway, looking for Steve. I could smell him easily, so I knew he was in the building. Turning a corner, I found him awkwardly leaning against a desk while a woman with curly golden blonde hair made advances. I knew his experience with women was lacking, so knowing how to push one away wasn't something he knew how to do... politely. He was very clearly uncomfortable and I decided to intervene pretty quickly before something happened... call it a woman's intuition. Quickly trotting over, a low growl rumbled in my throat as my ears flattened down a bit. I saw her eyes widen a bit and she backed up a step to avoid me.

My reputation on the battlefield was just as well known amongst the military as Steve's heroics were amongst, well, everyone. When it came to Bucky I had a tendency to bite first, ask questions later if I thought he was in a difficult situation. And —after seeing Steve around me— most people figured out that I was just as close with him and would most likely do the same. Which was a very good assumption on their part.

I pad to stand beside and a bit in front of Steve and narrowed my eyes at the woman, the growl rising up a bit. I moved around in a circle so that she was on the side that opened up to the rest of the room, and me in the corner. My lips lifted a bit, revealing my fangs as I slowly advanced forwards. Each step forwards incited one backward from her. My fur began to bristle and I lunged forwards, snapping my teeth together just in front of her. A tiny shriek hit my ears and she all but ran away, me nipping at her heels to drive her away completely. After only a few feet, she fled through a couple of doors and I stood in the middle of the room. My fur laid down and I visibly calmed down, the protective look softening to one of amusement as my tail gently wagged a bit.

"Captain." An amused voice rang out, the British accent revealing the identity of the speaker. I turned my head to see Steve standing behind me and looking at Peggy. "We're ready for you," a soft laugh reached my ears as she looked like she enjoyed watching my little display. "If you're not otherwise occupied."

I trot away quickly, feeling satisfied as I walked into the lab, my dog tags revealing my entrance as they softly clinked together. I heard Steve's footsteps approaching, sounding a bit quicker than usual. He was met by another person and they walked in. Of course, Howard had joined him, he was going to equip him for the newest mission with some new equipment.

"Fondue is just cheese and bread, my friend." Howard begins to talk as they enter the room. ' _What the..? Where did this conversation come from?!?'_

"Really? I didn't think..." Steve looked really embarrassed. He was trying to hide it, but I could see through it easily.

"Nor should you, pal. The moment you think you know what's goin' on in a woman's head, it's the moment your goose is well and truly cooked." An annoyed huff escaped me and Steve looked over, amusement showing on his features. "Me, I concentrate on work. Which at the moment is about making sure you, your men, and your canine friend here do not get killed." He gestures to the cloth on the table, "Carbon polymer. Should withstand your average German bayonet. Although Hydra's not going to attack you with a pocket knife. I hear you're kinda attached?"

I get up and walk over as he pats the shield with his hand, creating a slightly echoey noise. "It's handier than you might think." Steve smiles at me fondly before gently rubbing the top of my head.

"I took the liberty of coming up with some options." I saw the gleam of something silver on the lower shelf and walked over. "This one's fun. She's been fitted with electrical relays. It'll allow you to-" I cut him off by nosing and pulling out a round, silvery shield. It was simple, no unnecessary gadgets or tech, just a round shield.

"What about this one?" Steve takes it from me and looks it over.

The look of panic showed on Howard's face as he protested. "No! No! That's just a prototype."

"What's it made of?" Steve was checking the round shield over, turning it around, and putting his arm through the straps on the inside.

"Vibranium. It's stronger than steel and a third the weight. It's completely vibration absorbent."

"How come it's not standard issue?" He ran his hand over the top edge, obviously already attached to it. _'Good question, even if all I got from that is it's strong...'_

"That's the rarest metal on Earth. What you're holding there? That's all we've got."

I heard heeled footsteps coming towards the doorway and recognized it as Peggy. "You quite finished Mr. Stark? I'm sure the Captain and Mallow have some unfinished business." Her tone was friendly as I saw her look at me, referring to the woman I had chased off. I could tell that Steve had explained what had happened, and it was very amusing to her.

 _"I wouldn't complain about chasing her around the building a couple times..."_ I chuffed lightly and wagged my tail a small bit.

Steve fitted the shield in front of him and was smiling. "What do you think?" Peggy turned thoughtfully and picked up a gun, shooting at the shield four times before giving a genuine smile.

"Yes. I think it works." She put the gun down and walked out of the lab. I wasn't worried due to knowing she wouldn't have actually shot Steve, but it did shock me a little.

I turned around and saw Steve and Howard with stunned looks on their faces before Steve handed him a paper. "I had some ideas about the uniform."

Howard takes it, but they're both still staring at the door. "Whatever you want pal."

I scoffed at the two men, inwardly laughing my tail off at their reactions. I walked out of the room to find Bucky and get some sleep before our next mission.

——Time skip: January 1945——

The group that Steve and Bucky put together was... odd to say the least. Although we got the job done so it didn't really matter too much. They called us the 'Howling Commandos'. I personally thought the name was fitting since they had a dog in their company, but that's just me. Steve had apparently obtained the name 'Captain America' and was clad in red white and blue. A bit over the top, but then again he seemed to like it so, meh.

We took down Hydra bases all over the world as we 'Set a fire under Schmidt's ass'. Everything was going well. Not too many injuries or problems. Bucky and I saved Steve on so many occasions it wasn't even funny at this point. Bucky covered people with sniper fire as I ran between enemy groups, causing chaos and killing Hydra soldiers as I went.

Something that worried me was that for the past month, I started having the nightmare again. The icy mountain covered in snow plagued my sleep, and the screams that were of Bucky and Steve seemed to haunt my thoughts... Each time I would wake up, terror and cold gripping my limbs as their screams echoed in my mind.  
  


We had caught word that Zola would be on a train that lay in the mountains. So there we stood, the wind ruffling my fur as we waited for word on the train.

Bucky piped up worriedly, "Remember when I made you ride the Cyclone at Coney Island?"

"Yeah, and I threw up?" Steve didn't look over as he looked out, a focused expression on his face.

"This isn't payback, is it?"

"Now why would I do that?" Humor crept into his voice as he looked at the zip-line.

Gabe piped up from where he was knelt down, listening to a stolen HYDRA radio. "We were right. Dr. Zola's on the train. Hydra dispatcher gave him permission to open up the throttle. Wherever he's going, they must need him bad." A bad feeling lay in the pit of my stomach as I listened.

Falsworth spoke up as I heard the scarily familiar rumble of the train. "Let's get going, because they're moving like the devil."

Steve walked over to the zip-line again. "We only got about a 10-second window. You miss that window, we're bugs on a windshield." I huffed. _'Well that's reassuring...'_

"Mind the gap." Falsworth's comment seemed like a farewell on his part.

Dum-Dum looked up from the radio as well. "Better get moving bugs!"

Steve went first on the zip-line and I jumped onto Bucky as he jumped on as well. He had put a special piece of armor on his sleeve, just in case I needed to hang on for some reason. So I did just that. My jaws clamped shut on his forearm and his hand securely held my collar. Gabe jumped on just after Bucky and I and we slid down to the approaching train.

We all landed safely and quickly jumped into the train. Bucky and I followed Steve into the next car before the door slammed shut. A growl erupted from my throat as we were separated from him. I grabbed Bucky and pushed him into the shelter of some crates as bullets began to fly. I crouched on the opposite side due to space restrictions.

I could hear an energetic sounding noise after a muffled shout over the intercom. My growl silenced as the need to be quiet became imperative. Creeping along the floor, I snuck towards one of the Hydra soldiers and jumped onto him. Sinking my teeth into his throat, I easily snapped his neck before darting to cover again. I heard the door open and saw a gun get tossed in Bucky's direction.

A blue blur ran at and knocked one of the crates, revealing a soldier as Bucky shot them. "I had him on the ropes." He panted and somehow was able to make a wisecrack in our current situation.

I snarled as another man came in the room, clad in armor and odd blue energy in his weapons. He aimed for Steve and knocked him backward with a blue beam of energy, the side of the train ripping open. I rushed over to Steve as Bucky picked up the shield.

Everything happened so fast. At one moment Bucky was shooting the soldier, the next Bucky was gone. I saw Steve run towards the hole and I ran at the soldier. Jumping through the air and landing on him, I quickly snapped his neck before running towards the opening.

My nightmare flashed through my head for a split second as Steve reached towards Bucky. "Bucky! Hang on! Grab my hand!"

I leaned out to watch helplessly as the metal bar he was holding onto gave out. My eyes widened as I watched Bucky fall.

Down.  
  


Down.  
  
  


Down...  
  
  
  
  


"No!!!"  
  
  
  


I couldn't look away as my nightmare echoed in my head. as Steve let out a pained sob, looking away from the ravine. I stood there, a blank look on my face. But that didn't reflect the storm of emotions that raged in my gray-blue eyes, which seemed to be lighter than usual...

Gabe entered the room and saw Steve's grief-filled look, staying silent in respect of the grieving friends.

We rode the train for a while, Steve clutching onto me like a lifeline. I lowered my head so it was resting over his shoulders on his back. A constant whimper was softly coming from my throat as we both took comfort out of the other's presence.

Steve and I didn't go to the camp upon returning from the mission. Instead, we head for a destroyed city and sat in a bar, Steve drinking and me staring blankly off into space.

At one point, I got up. Steve made no attempt to stop me from leaving the building, but then again I often went out alone to gather my thoughts and just take time to process. Peggy was walking through the rubble and I looked up at her, a heartbroken look on my face. She gently placed her hand on the top of my head and I gestured to the bar with my tail before turning away, tail and ears drooping. I walked through the ash and rubble before beginning to run at a swift pace into the forest. I hadn't gone more than a mile before finding a clearing that overlooked the city. Both the broken and thriving cities visible from this small hill.

The moon shone in the night air, casting a blue glow over the landscape. The stars glittered coldly from their positions in the vast abyss of the night sky. My fur seemed to be bleached to shades of black, silver, and white as I stood on the hill.

Despair welled up in my soul as I gave in to an overwhelming need to release the emotion that had been bottled up inside my body. My muzzle lifted as I pointed my nose to the moon. My mouth opened as a cry bubbled forth from my throat.

It was long and low-pitched.

Filled with grief and sadness, sorrow and despair.

I cried out to the cold and unforgiving sky, all of my heart and soul as I grieved for my friend.

No...

As I grieved for my lost family member. The man who took me in and showed me kindness after a short span of misery.

The man who had suffered with me for a month in a Hydra base.

And the man who I now howled for, pouring my heart and all of my grief into the powerful sound that carried for miles around. The woeful sound that reached Steve and Peggy in the ruins of a destroyed city, and reached Howard, the General, and every soldier and 'Howling Commando' in the camp.

A sorrowful song from the deepest reaches of my heart, as I grieved for the lost member of my family.


	10. When Everything is Torn Away

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is almost pure pain, again... I'm sorry...

The sun was rising when I looked up towards the sky, the black void of stars turning to blue. My limbs were numb with cold as I rose from my sitting position on the snow-covered hill. I hadn't slept, ate, or drank anything. Just sat... looking... listening numbly to the broken city.

I forced my paws to move as I ran back to camp, back to the place where I could fight for Bucky, and fight with Steve.

Arriving into camp, my paws carried me along Steve's scent trail into one of the buildings. It was clear a meeting just ended as people were getting up and moving around hurriedly. Steve walked over to me and knelt down. "Stay with Peggy alright?"

I sighed and gave him a huff to signal I understood but stopped him from leaving by gently grabbing his hand in my jaws. He looked at me confused before I moved his hand to my neck, making it brush against the dog tags and leather collar. He seemed to understand my meaning and took both off. Putting the dog tags around his neck and tightening the large collar into a bracelet-type thing around his wrist (that way it was out of the way, but still there). I nuzzled him before walking off to find Peggy. She was getting a weapon and loading it when I walked over. Looking down, she gave me a confused and sympathetic look before walking out to join the soldiers. I followed her closely. Steve told me to stay with her, and I was too emotionally drained to even think about doing anything else.

I watched Steve leave separately with the other 'Howling Commandos'. I sat down on the floor next to Peggy as I watched everybody else getting ready to leave. Where we were going I didn't know, but my mission was to protect Peggy. And I was going to do just that.  
  


——Time skip: Outside the Hydra base——

We waited outside as I watched Steve being brought into the base, surrounded by guards. A growl rumbled in my throat as my muscles tensed, restraining myself from dashing forward and ripping every Hydra agent to shreds. The general nodded his head, the order to move as we saw the commandos zip-lining into a window. I trot with Peggy until we came across Hydra soldiers. My growl harshly rose as I locked onto them. My eyes flicked towards Peggy and she nodded at me.

I shot forward snarling at the soldiers, rage had me seeing red as anger replaced the grief in my heart. I became a raging demon as my teeth ripped their throats open, not bothering to give them a quick and painless death. "Mallow!"

My head whipped around as I saw Peggy and everyone else enter the building. I ran over and entered first, the soldiers backing up to give me space. We all ran down the hall as a soldier rounded the corner yelling, "Cut off one head, two more s-"

I leapt on top of him, knocking him to the ground as my fangs sunk into his throat, ripping it open. I raised my head, lifting my blood-stained muzzle and looked back as the general made a wisecrack. "Let's go find two more!"

Peggy and I ran forward to find Steve pinned in a hole in the wall, a man blowing fire and trapping him there. Peggy shot at him, disabling the armor as Steve stepped out from hiding.

"You're late," Steve commented, using Peggy's words from when he brought the 107th back.

"Weren't you about to..."

"Right." Steve ran towards a door, grabbing his shield as he went through. I ran forward and followed him as we ran through the hallways.

We saw Schmidt enter a huge plane and begin to fly away. Steve and I began to run down the runway, him pulling ahead due to the serum. We began to slow and I turned my head as a car drove up. We jumped in and began to catch up. "Keep it steady!" Steve got up to jump onto the landing gear.

"Wait!" Peggy stopped him and kissed him. It was soft and long-awaited. She pulled away and smiled softly. "Go get him."

Steve looks at the general in shock. "I'm not kissin' ya!" He remarks to Steve before watching him jump into the plane.

The car was suddenly turned back and we slid to a stop, the rear tires hanging over the cliff. I watched as the plane went up, higher and higher into the sky. We began to make our way back to the main building and Peggy and I sat down near the radio in the control room.

After a long while, a voice came through the radio. " **Come in. This is Captain Rogers. Do you read me?"**

Peggy instantly picked up the radio from another man and I stood up. "Steve, is that you? Are you alright?"

**"Peggy! Schmidt's dead."**

"What about the plane?"

**"That's a little bit tougher to explain."** _'No... please don't tell me...'_

"Give me your coordinates, I'll find you a safe landing site." I could hear the desperation creeping into her voice.

 **"There's not going to be a safe landing. But I can try and force it down**. **"** The sigh was evident in his voice as I realized exactly what was happening.

"I'll get Howard on the line, he'll know what to do."

**"There's not enough time. This thing's moving too fast and it's heading for New York. I gotta put her in the water."**

Peggy looked distraught as she scrambled for an alternative. "Please, don't do this. We have time. We can work it out." My ear swiveled backward as the other people in the room left.

 **"Right now I'm in the middle of nowhere. If I wait any longer a lot of people are gonna die. Peggy, this is my choice."** There's a pause, **"Peggy?"**

"I'm here." Her eyes got slightly glassy.

 **"I'm gonna need a rain check on that dance**. **"** I look down and my head droops, we all know about what's about to happen.

"Alright. A week, next Saturday, at the Stork Club." Tears are welling up in her eyes now.

**"You got it."**

"Eight o'clock on the dot. Don't you dare be late. Understood?"

**"You know, I still don't know how to dance."**

"I'll show you how. Just be there."  
  


I decided to give my own farewell, something personal. I reared up on my hind legs, my paws on the counter. Making sure I could be heard, I began to vocalize. A soft whining howl that sounded like music, and it was. I had learned a song, the tune stuck in my head from the multitude of times Bucky, Steve, and I had listened to it. I started a little bit in from the beginning to make sure the right message came out, and began to vocalize.

I paused, knowing from the light gasp that Steve had recognized the melody. He had begun to sing along softly with my vocalizations in a low pitch as we finished the chorus. My soft howl-like cries mixing with his voice over the radio in a sorrowful farewell as I handled the melody and Steve filled in the lyrics I didn't know.

**"In mountains that are stacked with fear.**   
**But you're a king and I'm a lionheart.**

**And in this sea that's painted black,**   
**Creatures lurk below the deck,**   
**But you're a king and I'm a lionheart."**

My eyes became glassy as the sheer gravity of the situation began to weigh on me.

**"And as the world come to an end,**   
**I'll be here to hold your hand.**   
**'Cause you're my king and I'm your lionheart."**

The radio cut out as I finished off the melody alone, the only part I really remembered.

_"A lionheart..."_   
  


Peggy begins to cry as she calls out desperately. "Steve? Steve? Steve?" Each utterance of his name caused the tears to come a bit faster.

I dropped down onto my paws and ran out of the room, not caring where I ended up. The cold stung my eyes as I ran, but I was numb to it all. I had lost the only two things I ever cared about within two days of each other. I was too deep in my thoughts to realize I had been surrounded by Hydra soldiers, and I was too drained emotionally and mentally to resist as they took me.  
  


——Unknown Location——

I woke up in a concrete room, chained to the floor (luckily without a muzzle this time). The events of the last two days hit me again and my heart sank. I sat up and did the only thing I could. Lifting my head, I began to howl.

A song filled with sorrow, grief, and the brokenness of my heart and soul. It echoed through the entire facility as I poured out all of my emotions.

The third howl I had ever uttered, long and mournful.  
  


——Time skip: a month later——

I was dragged into another room, the chains attached to shackles around my paws and neck, and a muzzle on my jaws. Around 10 men began to hold me, making sure I couldn't move as a scientist came forward with a giant needle.

I felt the cold syringe stick into my neck as a huge amount of liquid was injected into me. My veins felt like they were burning and freezing at the same time as my muscles convulsed all at once.

The men dragged my writhing body into my original cell before reattaching the chains to the floor.

I stayed there, stiff with pain as my muscles tightened all at once for hours upon hours. I didn't notice my body growing as the injection became successful, and reacted in unprecedented ways with my animal DNA.

By the time the pain stopped, I had finally seen that the shackles were broken, the heavy metal collar and muzzle included. After an hour of rest, I shakily stood up. My fur began to bristle as a snarl rose up in my throat. I ran at the heavy door and it was broken off its hinges.

Looking around, I smelled the air, easily finding the scent of fresh air. With a snarl, I leapt forward, dashing through the halls clumsily as I got used to my larger body. Alarms began to go off as men came into the hall, being knocked down as I charged down the hallways.

A huge set of double doors got closer and I ran forwards, lowering my head, flattening my ears, and shutting my eyes _._ I rolled over in the snow as the doors gave out and I fell with them. Getting up, I shook out my fur before running into the trees. I ran as fast as I could, no intention of stopping.  
  


I ran for hours, and unknowingly ran deep into the Eurasian wilderness.  
  
  


I started a new life in the wild, and stayed undetected for over 70 years. Although, I didn't realize I had left someone very important behind at that Hydra base.   
  


Somebody I would meet again in the worst of situations.  
  
  
  


——End of Book 1——


End file.
